War Thunder News

Today we’re introducing the VLT-2, a French torpedo boat built and used only in small numbers following the liberation of France at the end of WWII. This boat is arriving as part of the Seek & Destroy major update, becoming the first vessel available in the new French Coastal fleet tree!

[h2]VLT-2: A Premium Torpedo Boat for France at Rank IV[/h2]

Features:

• Excellent mobility!
  
• Potent arsenal.
  
• Premium bonuses.
  

Vehicle History
[expand]
During the occupation of France in the 1940s, French shipyards still had a number of vessels in construction. Part of these were a set of ten boats, which the Germans began converting into mine clearing vessels and rescue boats for the Luftwaffe. Shortly after the liberation, most of these projects were canceled. However, two of the vessels were converted into torpedo boats, being designated VLT-1 and VLT-2. These vessels underwent extensive evaluation in the postwar period, but the Navy ended up not pursuing building more units. In the end, VLT-2 ended up being dismantled in 1949 while the VLT-1 served as a basis for a new series of MTBs.
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Pre-order — VLT-2 Pack
29.99

• VLT-2 (Rank 4, France)
  
• 1000 Golden Eagles
  
• Premium account for 15 days
  
• Pre-order bonus: unique “People’s Avenger” title
  
• Pre-order bonus: unique “Free France” flag
  

[h2]Meet the VLT-2![/h2]

The VLT-2 will be the first French Coastal fleet vessel to arrive as part of the Seek & Destroy major update. Sporting excellent firepower and mobility, the VLT-2 will not only be a fantastic addition to any mid-tier lineup, but will also allow you to get a head start at researching the new French Coastal fleet research tree in the future closed beta testing!



Although the VLT-2 didn’t have the chance to show off its capabilities in real combat, it will have ample opportunity to make up for this on the high seas of War Thunder naval battles. This French boat boasts impressive mobility figures with her top speed exceeding 40 knots. It features a common weapon layout for vessels of its time period, being fitted with a pair of 40 mm Bofors and 20 mm Oerlikon cannons.



More importantly however, the VLT-2 also sports a pair of 550 mm torpedo launchers, giving it the chance to sink opponents much bigger than itself with a well aimed salvo. Furthermore, being powered by aircraft engines, the VLT-2 can reach impressive top speeds and make sharp turns. As a result, the vessel can make perfect tactical use of more confined naval battlegrounds to surprise its opponents during an engagement.



That’s it for today! The VLT-2 will be the first French Coastal fleet vessel available in War Thunder, coming as part of the Seek & Destroy major update. In a future major update later this year, you’ll be able to gain Early Access to researching the rest of the Coastal fleet tree if you purchase this special pack.

• A bug that caused buildings on the North Holland location to have low resistance to damage, making it possible to destroy them with machine gun fire, has been fixed.
  
• Rookie trophies with vehicles available in the in-game Item Shop for Golden Eagles are now updated twice as often: every 15 days. There are now 7 trophies instead of 12 at any given time.
  

Patch notes reflect only key changes, meaning they may not include a complete list of all improvements made. Additionally, War Thunder is constantly being updated and some changes may not require an update. Changes reflected in patch notes are formed by taking reactions and requests of the community from the bug reporting service, forums and other official platforms into account. Bug fixes and changes are implemented in order of importance, for example a game-breaking bug will be worked on and implemented sooner.

Today we’ll be showing you the interesting Namer 30, an Israeli armored personnel carrier developed on the Merkava chassis, coming to the top ranks of the Israeli ground tree as part of the Seek & Destroy major update!

[h2]Namer 30: A Light Tank for Israel at Rank VII[/h2]

Features:

• Deadly 30 mm cannon.
  
• Spike missiles!
  
• Decent protection.
  

Vehicle History
[expand]
Up until the early 2000s, Israel’s primary APC was still the American-built M113 which first entered service in the early 1960s. Becoming increasingly clear that the vehicle was susceptible to the threats of the modern battlefield, engineers began work on developing a successor based on the Merkava tank. Following rapid development and successful testing, the Namer officially entered service with the IDF in 2008. In 2016, the Namer underwent an experimental modification which saw it outfitted with a remote controlled 30 mm turret and Spike missile launchers.
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[h2]Meet the Namer 30![/h2]

The Namer 30 will soon take up the place as the new top light vehicle available to the Israeli ground tree in the Seek & Destroy major update. Outfitted with highly potent weapons and offering great mobility, the Namer will greatly reinforce the top ranks and will help diversify ground lineups Let’s dive into the full details!



This experimental variant of the Namer first derived from exploring the concept of outfitting these vehicles with more powerful weapons, and as a result, this variant features a much different design compared to the others. When comparing to the Merkava though, instead of the high-caliber main tank gun, the Namer is outfitted with a remote-controlled 30 mm turret, possessing fantastic versatility thanks to its high rate of fire and excellent ballistic properties. Furthermore, there’s a pair of twin Spike launchers that greatly expand this vehicle’s anti-tank capability, allowing it to engage even heavily armored targets at a distance of up to 4 km!

Interesting: Because the Namer is based on the Merkava MBT, it features much better protection than most other IFVs.



You’ll most likely be familiar with IFVs in War Thunder, knowing that they all feature similar characteristics such as being light-weight and having good mobility. The Namer does also stick to this design philosophy to some extent, however due to it inheriting the Merkava’s chassis, it boasts significantly better protection than most other IFVs in the game. While this chassis doesn’t mean you’ll be speeding around like an R3, it does mean you’ll be able to survive extra shots, particularly from other IFVs and aircraft for example. This is thanks to the good positioning of vital modules and the crew behind the engine acting as a barrier to penetrating shots, plus using a remote-controlled turret, further lowering the exposure of crew members from incoming fire.

In your matches by Dmitry, Lead Game Designer: “On paper you have a rather strong hull for an IFV and an uninhabited turret with the well-known 30mm cannon, which is already familiar to many vehicles. On its BR, this cannon can penetrate some MBTs in the LFP, but almost always non-fatally. So don’t go head-on on MBTs, fire at them from afar with spikes, drive into the side of close targets, or don’t light up if both points are no longer feasible. Also try to hunt for other IFVs and SPAAs, and don't forget about scouting -- it helps your allies a lot.

Spike missiles are also well-known to players from such vehicles as Freccia, Vilkas, KF41. They can pleasantly surprise and bring an unexpected frag, but you can't rely on them. They fully support their name -- "fire and forget". I always joke about this: "shoot and forget about the missile", it doesn’t owe you anything, but it may accidentally bring you a reward. Also, don't forget that they reload quickly enough at the capture zone, and on open maps such vehicles become quite good defenders of points: with scouting, an autocannon effective in close combat, and "endless" RNG Spikes.”

That’s today’s blog wrapped! The Namer is going to prove to be a good addition to Israeli ground lineups, where you’ll be able to research and try it when it comes to the game in the Seek & Destroy major update. In the meantime, make sure to stay tuned to the news that we’re currently cooking so that you don’t miss out on what’s coming. Until then, have fun in your battles!

Members of the Italian Navy celebrate Italian Navy Day on June 10th. The Italian Navy was founded in 1861, shortly after the unification of the country. Today it has more than 30,000 staff, 184 ships and 70 aircraft. They patrol the Adriatic and Tyrrhenian seas, as well as the Strait of Otranto.

[h3]RN Geniere is temporarily available for Golden Eagles![/h3]
This destroyer is available for 3,850 Golden Eagles.

When: Until June 13th (07:00 GMT).
Where: Italy > Bluewater fleet > Premium vehicles.

About this destroyer

• The RN Geniere features three main caliber turrets housing 120 mm guns with a decent rate of fire and good selection of ammo. Additionally this destroyer has good protection against aircraft thanks to its 20 mm anti-aircraft guns! To deal with heavier ships, RN Geniere is also armed with 6 x 533 mm torpedoes and depth charges. A good all-round destroyer!
  

[h3]Earn the “MAS 15” decal![/h3]
You can get this decal for this special occasion!

“MAS 15” decal

When: Until June 13th (07:00 GMT).

Task: Play 3 battles using Italian naval vessels at rank III or higher to receive the “MAS 15” decal.

Additional details:

• You must use a minimum of rank III.
  
• Your activity must not be below 70%.
  
• You can complete the task in random battles, except for Enduring Confrontation missions, and [Assault] mode.
  
• Track your progress in the hangar by clicking Nickname → Achievements → Holidays → Italian Navy Day.
  
• You can find the decal in the “Holidays” tab in the Customization menu.
  

We enjoyed seeing your captured screenshots last week! This week is open to any vehicle of your choice. What puts a smile on your face every time you use it in War Thunder? The three most popular and three selected by us will get 300 GE. See the winners down below!

[h2]Let’s begin the 123rd edition of our competition![/h2]

Create a stunning screenshot and submit it on the War Thunder Steam Community Hub with the tag #WTscreen123. You have time until the 14th of June to submit your screenshot.

After that date, 6 winners will be selected (3 of which will be the highest rated by the community and 3 selected by our judges), each of which receive a reward of 300GE.

[h3]Terms:[/h3]

Your screenshot must include a player vehicle.
You must add the #WTscreen123 tag (title cannot have any other text in it).
Artists may only win by popular vote once per four screenshot competitions.
• Screenshots need to be compliant with the War Thunder rules.
  
• You need to be the author of the screenshot.
  
• Screenshot needs to be new. You cannot use those which have previously been published or used in other competitions.
  
• We will only accept raw screenshots from the game. You cannot use any editing software nor any other visual enhancements (like Nvidia Ansel filters).
  
• You can use filters and settings built into War Thunder.
  
• You can use the replay functionality built into War Thunder.
  
• Rewards will be delivered to the author's account within 14 working days.
  

[h2]And now, time for the winners of the competition’s 122nd edition – Naval Landing![/h2]

[h3]Winners selected via community votes:[/h3]
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3259466030
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3260058937
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3029732522

[h3]Winners selected by our judges:[/h3]
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3258987659
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3258533988
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3259540663

Each winner will get 300GE! Congratulations and see you next week!